EP2899513B1 - Rotary encoder with laser interferometer for determining position changes of the stator - Google Patents
Rotary encoder with laser interferometer for determining position changes of the stator Download PDFInfo
- Publication number
- EP2899513B1 EP2899513B1 EP15152832.0A EP15152832A EP2899513B1 EP 2899513 B1 EP2899513 B1 EP 2899513B1 EP 15152832 A EP15152832 A EP 15152832A EP 2899513 B1 EP2899513 B1 EP 2899513B1
- Authority
- EP
- European Patent Office
- Prior art keywords
- rotation angle
- rotary encoder
- reference body
- rotating shaft
- measured
- Prior art date
- Legal status (The legal status is an assumption and is not a legal conclusion. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation as to the accuracy of the status listed.)
- Active
Links
- 238000005259 measurement Methods 0.000 claims description 62
- 238000000034 method Methods 0.000 claims description 33
- 230000001105 regulatory effect Effects 0.000 claims description 15
- 230000033228 biological regulation Effects 0.000 claims description 13
- 238000001514 detection method Methods 0.000 claims description 9
- 230000005484 gravity Effects 0.000 claims description 7
- 238000006073 displacement reaction Methods 0.000 description 22
- 238000010168 coupling process Methods 0.000 description 18
- 230000033001 locomotion Effects 0.000 description 12
- 230000008878 coupling Effects 0.000 description 11
- 238000005859 coupling reaction Methods 0.000 description 11
- 230000003287 optical effect Effects 0.000 description 10
- 230000010287 polarization Effects 0.000 description 8
- 230000003068 static effect Effects 0.000 description 6
- 238000005516 engineering process Methods 0.000 description 3
- 238000004519 manufacturing process Methods 0.000 description 2
- 230000005540 biological transmission Effects 0.000 description 1
- 238000007519 figuring Methods 0.000 description 1
- 230000002452 interceptive effect Effects 0.000 description 1
- 239000013307 optical fiber Substances 0.000 description 1
- 230000010355 oscillation Effects 0.000 description 1
- 230000006641 stabilisation Effects 0.000 description 1
- 238000011105 stabilization Methods 0.000 description 1
- 239000000725 suspension Substances 0.000 description 1
- 239000013585 weight reducing agent Substances 0.000 description 1
Images
Classifications
-
- G—PHYSICS
- G01—MEASURING; TESTING
- G01D—MEASURING NOT SPECIALLY ADAPTED FOR A SPECIFIC VARIABLE; ARRANGEMENTS FOR MEASURING TWO OR MORE VARIABLES NOT COVERED IN A SINGLE OTHER SUBCLASS; TARIFF METERING APPARATUS; MEASURING OR TESTING NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR
- G01D5/00—Mechanical means for transferring the output of a sensing member; Means for converting the output of a sensing member to another variable where the form or nature of the sensing member does not constrain the means for converting; Transducers not specially adapted for a specific variable
- G01D5/12—Mechanical means for transferring the output of a sensing member; Means for converting the output of a sensing member to another variable where the form or nature of the sensing member does not constrain the means for converting; Transducers not specially adapted for a specific variable using electric or magnetic means
- G01D5/244—Mechanical means for transferring the output of a sensing member; Means for converting the output of a sensing member to another variable where the form or nature of the sensing member does not constrain the means for converting; Transducers not specially adapted for a specific variable using electric or magnetic means influencing characteristics of pulses or pulse trains; generating pulses or pulse trains
- G01D5/24471—Error correction
-
- G—PHYSICS
- G01—MEASURING; TESTING
- G01D—MEASURING NOT SPECIALLY ADAPTED FOR A SPECIFIC VARIABLE; ARRANGEMENTS FOR MEASURING TWO OR MORE VARIABLES NOT COVERED IN A SINGLE OTHER SUBCLASS; TARIFF METERING APPARATUS; MEASURING OR TESTING NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR
- G01D5/00—Mechanical means for transferring the output of a sensing member; Means for converting the output of a sensing member to another variable where the form or nature of the sensing member does not constrain the means for converting; Transducers not specially adapted for a specific variable
- G01D5/12—Mechanical means for transferring the output of a sensing member; Means for converting the output of a sensing member to another variable where the form or nature of the sensing member does not constrain the means for converting; Transducers not specially adapted for a specific variable using electric or magnetic means
- G01D5/244—Mechanical means for transferring the output of a sensing member; Means for converting the output of a sensing member to another variable where the form or nature of the sensing member does not constrain the means for converting; Transducers not specially adapted for a specific variable using electric or magnetic means influencing characteristics of pulses or pulse trains; generating pulses or pulse trains
- G01D5/24471—Error correction
- G01D5/24485—Error correction using other sensors
-
- G—PHYSICS
- G01—MEASURING; TESTING
- G01D—MEASURING NOT SPECIALLY ADAPTED FOR A SPECIFIC VARIABLE; ARRANGEMENTS FOR MEASURING TWO OR MORE VARIABLES NOT COVERED IN A SINGLE OTHER SUBCLASS; TARIFF METERING APPARATUS; MEASURING OR TESTING NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR
- G01D5/00—Mechanical means for transferring the output of a sensing member; Means for converting the output of a sensing member to another variable where the form or nature of the sensing member does not constrain the means for converting; Transducers not specially adapted for a specific variable
- G01D5/26—Mechanical means for transferring the output of a sensing member; Means for converting the output of a sensing member to another variable where the form or nature of the sensing member does not constrain the means for converting; Transducers not specially adapted for a specific variable characterised by optical transfer means, i.e. using infrared, visible, or ultraviolet light
- G01D5/266—Mechanical means for transferring the output of a sensing member; Means for converting the output of a sensing member to another variable where the form or nature of the sensing member does not constrain the means for converting; Transducers not specially adapted for a specific variable characterised by optical transfer means, i.e. using infrared, visible, or ultraviolet light by interferometric means
-
- G—PHYSICS
- G01—MEASURING; TESTING
- G01D—MEASURING NOT SPECIALLY ADAPTED FOR A SPECIFIC VARIABLE; ARRANGEMENTS FOR MEASURING TWO OR MORE VARIABLES NOT COVERED IN A SINGLE OTHER SUBCLASS; TARIFF METERING APPARATUS; MEASURING OR TESTING NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR
- G01D5/00—Mechanical means for transferring the output of a sensing member; Means for converting the output of a sensing member to another variable where the form or nature of the sensing member does not constrain the means for converting; Transducers not specially adapted for a specific variable
- G01D5/26—Mechanical means for transferring the output of a sensing member; Means for converting the output of a sensing member to another variable where the form or nature of the sensing member does not constrain the means for converting; Transducers not specially adapted for a specific variable characterised by optical transfer means, i.e. using infrared, visible, or ultraviolet light
- G01D5/32—Mechanical means for transferring the output of a sensing member; Means for converting the output of a sensing member to another variable where the form or nature of the sensing member does not constrain the means for converting; Transducers not specially adapted for a specific variable characterised by optical transfer means, i.e. using infrared, visible, or ultraviolet light with attenuation or whole or partial obturation of beams of light
- G01D5/34—Mechanical means for transferring the output of a sensing member; Means for converting the output of a sensing member to another variable where the form or nature of the sensing member does not constrain the means for converting; Transducers not specially adapted for a specific variable characterised by optical transfer means, i.e. using infrared, visible, or ultraviolet light with attenuation or whole or partial obturation of beams of light the beams of light being detected by photocells
- G01D5/347—Mechanical means for transferring the output of a sensing member; Means for converting the output of a sensing member to another variable where the form or nature of the sensing member does not constrain the means for converting; Transducers not specially adapted for a specific variable characterised by optical transfer means, i.e. using infrared, visible, or ultraviolet light with attenuation or whole or partial obturation of beams of light the beams of light being detected by photocells using displacement encoding scales
- G01D5/34707—Scales; Discs, e.g. fixation, fabrication, compensation
Definitions
- the present invention relates to an angle measuring method and an angle measuring system, which can be suitably used in a technical field that requires accurate measurement of the rotation angle of a rotor.
- an angle measuring method using a polygon mirror and an autocollimator (hereinafter referred to as a "polygon mirror method”) or an angle measuring method using a Hirth coupling and a laser interferometer (hereinafter referred to as a "Hirth coupling method”) has conventionally been performed.
- the polygon mirror method includes measuring a difference between the rotation angle of an object to be measured on which a polygon mirror is mounted and the angle of the polygon mirror by a high-accuracy autocollimator.
- the Hirth coupling method includes rotating an object to be measured to which a Hirth coupling is attached to be a predetermined target angular displacement, counter-rotating the Hirth coupling by an amount corresponding to the target angular displacement after decoupling the Hirth coupling, and comparing the sum of the counter-angular displacement of the Hirth coupling and an angular displacement from a reference position which is measured by a laser interferometer with the target angular displacement of the object to be measured (Japanese National Publication of International Patent Application No. 1994-502727 )
- a method for the calibration of the angle through which an object is rotated about an axis of rotation, such as a rotary table, is known from NL1033040 C2 .
- the Hirth coupling method requires the oscillating operation of rotating an object to be measured to a target angular displacement and then returning a reflecting mirror of a laser interferometer to the original position by counter-rotating the Hirth coupling by an amount corresponding to the target angular displacement, which results in longer overall measurement time. Additionally, since the accuracy of angle measurement depends on the resolution of gear teeth of the Hirth coupling, and a transmission error occurs in the gear teeth of the Hirth coupling when forward rotation and reverse rotation are repeated, there is a limitation to improvement in measurement accuracy.
- a rotary encoder is known as a device which detects a rotation angle. Although a rotary encoder needs to be attached to a rotating shaft of an object to be measured with high accuracy in order to bring measurement accuracy within a tolerable range, actual high-accuracy attachment of a rotary encoder is not very easy. This hinders utilization of a rotary encoder.
- the present invention has been made in consideration of the above-described circumstances, and aims to provide an angle measuring method and an angle measuring apparatus capable of measuring a rotation angle with high accuracy in a short time.
- a rotary encoder which includes a body section, a rotating shaft which is freely rotatable with respect to the body section, a code section attached to the rotating shaft, and a read section fixed to the body section which reads a code of the code section.
- a displacement of a body section of the rotary encoder in a plane orthogonal to a rotating shaft of the rotary encoder is regulated within a fixed allowance range so as to tolerate eccentricity between a rotating shaft of an object to be measured which is rotationally driven and a rotating shaft of the rotary encoder attached to the rotating shaft of the object to be measured; a rotation angle of the rotating shaft of the rotary encoder is measured based on a code read by the read section of the rotary encoder; a changed angle of the body section of the rotary encoder is detected, the changed angle being an angle changed from a time point when measurement of the rotation angle of the rotating shaft of the rotary encoder is started; and the rotation angle measured using the rotary encoder is corrected based on the detected changed angle of the body section
- a measurement value from the rotary encoder is corrected with a changed angle of the body section of the rotary encoder.
- the rotation angle can thus be measured with higher accuracy in a shorter time than a conventional angle measuring technique using the polygon mirror method or the Hirth coupling method.
- a tolerable range for the amount of eccentricity between the rotating shaft of the rotary encoder and the rotating shaft of the object to be measured can be made broader than a tolerable range specified for the rotary encoder, which makes attachment of the rotary encoder to the object to be measured much easier. That is, according to the present invention, rotation angle measurement can be performed with high accuracy in a short time using a rotary encoder, which contributes greatly to an increase in the production capacity of a machine tool or the like.
- the regulating of displacement of the body section of the rotary encoder within the fixed allowance range is performed using a jig which locks the body section of the rotary encoder while tolerating the displacement of the body section of the rotary encoder within the fixed allowance range.
- the method further comprising urging the body section of the rotary encoder in a gravity direction using a weight is attached to the body section of the rotary encoder.
- an angle measuring method using a rotary encoder including a body section, a rotating shaft which is freely rotatable with respect to the body section, a code section attached to the rotating shaft, and a read section fixed to the body section which reads a code of the code section
- the angle measuring method comprising: regulating a displacement of a body section of the rotary encoder in a plane orthogonal to a rotating shaft of the rotary encoder within a fixed allowance range so as to tolerate eccentricity between a rotating shaft of an object to be measured which is rotationally driven and a rotating shaft of the rotary encoder attached to the rotating shaft of the object to be measured; measuring a rotation angle of the rotating shaft of the rotary encoder based on a code read by the read section of the rotary encoder; detecting a changed angle of the rotating shaft of the rotary encoder, the changed angle being an angle changed from a time point when measurement of the rotation angle of the body section of the rotary encoder is started; and correcting the
- a measurement value from the rotary encoder is corrected with a changed angle of the body section of the rotary encoder.
- the rotation angle can thus be measured with higher accuracy in a shorter time than a conventional angle measuring technique using the polygon mirror method or the Hirth coupling method.
- a tolerable range for the amount of eccentricity between the rotating shaft of the rotary encoder and the rotating shaft of the object to be measured can be made broader than a tolerable range specified for the rotary encoder, which makes attachment of the rotary encoder to the object to be measured much easier. That is, according to the present invention, rotation angle measurement can be performed with high accuracy in a short time using a rotary encoder, which contributes greatly to an increase in the production capacity of a machine tool or the like.
- the regulating of displacement of the body section of the rotary encoder within the fixed allowance range is performed using a jig which locks the rotating shaft of the rotary encoder while tolerating the displacement of the rotating shaft of the rotary encoder within the fixed allowance range.
- the method further comprising urging the rotating shaft of the rotary encoder in a gravity direction using a weight attached to the rotating shaft of the rotary encoder.
- the regulation member includes a jig which locks the body section of the rotary encoder while tolerating the displacement of the body section of the rotary encoder within the fixed allowance range.
- the regulation member includes a weight which is attached to the body section of the rotary encoder to urge the body section of the rotary encoder in a gravity direction.
- an angle measuring system comprising: a rotary encoder including a body section, a rotating shaft which is freely rotatable with respect to the body section, the rotating shaft being attached to an object to be measured which is rotationally driven, a code section attached to the rotating shaft, and a read section fixed to the body section which reads a code of the code section; a regulation member which regulates displacement of the rotating shaft of the rotary encoder in a plane orthogonal to the rotating shaft of the rotary encoder to within a fixed allowance range so as to tolerate eccentricity between the rotating shaft of the object to be measured and the rotating shaft of the rotary encoder; a non-contact angle detecting device which detects, in a non-contact manner, a changed angle of the rotating shaft of the rotary encoder, the changed angle being an angle changed from a time point when measurement of the rotation angle of the body section of the rotary encoder is started; and a correction device which corrects a rotation angle corresponding to a code read by the read section of
- the regulation member includes a jig which locks the rotating shaft of the rotary encoder while tolerating the displacement of the rotating shaft of the rotary encoder within the fixed allowance range.
- the regulation member includes a weight which is attached to the rotating shaft of the rotary encoder to urge the rotating shaft of the rotary encoder in a gravity direction.
- the non-contact angle detecting device includes first and second reflector elements set on the plane orthogonal to the rotating shaft of a part of the rotary encoder which is regulated by the regulation member, a laser light source, an interference optical system which splits a light beam emitted from the laser light source into a first light beam heading toward the first reflector element and a second light beam heading toward the second reflector element and causing a first reflected light beam reflected from the first reflector element and a second reflected light beam reflected from the second reflector element to interfere with each other, a phase difference detecting device which detects a phase difference between the first reflected light beam and the second reflected light beam caused by the interference optical system to interfere with each other, and an inclination angle calculating device which calculates an inclination angle of a straight line connecting corresponding points of the first reflector element and second reflector element on the basis of the phase difference between the first reflected light beam and the second reflected light beam detected by the phase difference detecting device and a difference
- the correction device figures out the sum of the rotation angle corresponding to the code read by the read section of the rotary encoder and the inclination angle calculated by the inclination angle calculating device.
- the non-contact angle detecting device performs at least one of static measurement, in which the rotation angle is detected when rotation of the rotating shaft of the object to be measured is stopped, and dynamic measurement, in which the rotation angle is detected while the rotating shaft of the object to be measured is rotating.
- the present invention allows measurement of a rotation angle with higher accuracy in a shorter time than the prior art.
- the present invention also makes attachment of a rotary encoder to an object to be measured much easier.
- Fig. 1 is a view of the overall configuration of an example of an angle measuring system according to a first embodiment.
- An angle measuring system 100 shown in Fig. 1 measures, using a rotary encoder 2, the rotation angle of a rotating shaft 1a of an object 1 to be measured which is rotationally driven.
- the rotary encoder 2 includes an encoder body 2a and a rotating shaft 3 which is freely rotatable with respect to the encoder body 2a.
- Fig. 2 is a side view showing how the rotating shaft 3 of the rotary encoder 2 is attached to the rotating shaft 1a of the object 1 to be measured
- Fig. 3 is a front view thereof.
- a disc-like encoder 14 (code section) is attached to the rotating shaft 3 inside the encoder body 2a. Graduations (codes) are marked on the entire circumference about the rotating shaft 3 of the encoder 14.
- the encoder 14 may be of the incremental type or of the absolute type.
- An encoder read head 13 (read section) which reads a graduation of the encoder 14 is fixed to the encoder body 2a.
- the encoder read head 13 outputs a pulse signal (rotation angle signal) corresponding to a read graduation of the encoder 14. That is, a pulse signal corresponding to a variation in the rotation angle of the encoder body 2a relative to the rotating shaft 3 is generated by the rotary encoder 2.
- the encoder body 2a may be of the coupling-containing type.
- the rotating shaft 3 of the rotary encoder 2 is attached to the encoder body 2a via a bearing 15 which is composed of, for example, a ball bearing.
- the rotating shaft 3 of the rotary encoder 2 is removably attached to the rotating shaft 1a of the object 1 to be measured. After the attachment, the rotating shaft 3 is freely rotatable with respect to the encoder body 2a via the bearing 15. For this reason, even if the rotating shaft 1a of the object 1 to be measured rotates, a cable 16 which is connected to the rotary encoder body 2a does not twine around the object 1 to be measured.
- the rotating shaft 3 according to the present embodiment includes an attaching section 3a to be attached to the rotating shaft 1a of the object 1 to be measured.
- the rotating shaft 3 may be attached to the rotating shaft 1a of the object 1 to be measured via a special attachment.
- the encoder body 2a is arranged in a state in which motion (displacement) in a plane orthogonal to the rotating shaft 3 (hereinafter referred to as an "orthogonal plane") is tolerated within a fixed allowance range so as to tolerate eccentricity of the rotating shaft 1a of the object 1 to be measured from the rotating shaft 3 of the rotary encoder 2, as will be described later.
- a tolerable range for the amount of eccentricity of the rotating shaft 3 of the rotary encoder 2 from the rotating shaft 1a of the object 1 to be measured depends on attachment tolerances of a non-contact angle detecting device 20 (to be described later).
- the tolerable range for the amount of eccentricity is broader than a tolerable range specified for the rotary encoder 2, which makes attachment of the rotary encoder 2 to the object 1 to be measured much easier.
- a side runout may cause a measurement error.
- a side runout is kept at or below a specified value which is calculated to suit target measurement accuracy.
- the non-contact angle detecting device 20 includes an interference unit 4 (a rectangular prism 5 and a polarization beam splitter 6), corner cube prisms 7 (7a and 7b), a laser light source 10, a phase difference detecting head 11, and a data processing device 12.
- the non-contact angle detecting device 20 detects, in a non-contact manner, the inclination angle of the encoder body 2a which is changed from a time point when measurement of the rotation angle of the rotating shaft 3 using the rotary encoder 2 is started.
- the rotation angle measurement may be static measurement, in which the rotation angle is detected when rotation of the rotating shaft 1a of the object 1 to be measured is stopped, or dynamic measurement, in which the rotation angle is detected while the rotating shaft 1a of the object 1 to be measured is rotating.
- a time point when rotation is started is a rotation angle measurement start point.
- an arbitrary time point during rotation can be set as a rotation angle measurement start point.
- Fig. 4 is a side view showing how the interference unit 4 is arranged
- Fig. 5 is a front view thereof.
- the pair of corner cube prisms 7a and 7b (reflector elements) are set on the orthogonal plane (a plane orthogonal to the rotating shaft 3) of the encoder body 2a.
- the interference unit 4 (interference optical system) is arranged to directly confront the pair of corner cube prisms 7a and 7b.
- the interference unit 4 includes the rectangular prism 5 and polarization beam splitter 6.
- the interference unit 4 splits a laser light beam emitted from the laser light source 10 into a first laser light beam heading toward the first corner cube prism 7a and a second laser light beam heading toward the second corner cube prism 7b.
- the first laser light beam having passed through the polarization beam splitter 6 directly strikes the first corner cube prism 7a.
- the first laser light beam (first reflected laser light beam) reflected by the first corner cube prism 7a returns directly to the polarization beam splitter 6.
- the second laser light beam reflected at right angles by the polarization beam splitter 6 is further reflected at a right angle by the rectangular prism 5 and strikes the second corner cube prism 7b.
- the second laser light beam (second reflected light beam) reflected by the second corner cube prism 7b is reflected at right angles by the rectangular prism 5 and returns to the polarization beam splitter 6. That is, the interference unit 4 causes the first and second laser light beams parallel to each other to strike the first and second corner cube prisms 7a and 7b, respectively, and causes the first and second reflected light beams that are reflected from the first and second corner cube prisms 7a and 7b and return to interfere with each other. Accordingly, interference fringes are generated from the first and second reflected light beams with different optical path lengths by the interference unit 4.
- the polarization beam splitter 6 is arranged such that a part (the first laser light beam) of the laser light beam emitted from the laser light source 10 passes through the polarization beam splitter 6 to perpendicularly strike an entrance surface of the first corner cube prism 7a.
- the rectangular prism 5 is arranged such that the second laser light beam having passed through the rectangular prism 5 is parallel to the first laser light beam.
- the phase difference detecting head 11 receives interfering light which is composed of the first reflected light beam and second reflected light beam with the different optical path lengths and detects the phase difference between the reflected light beams (the first and second reflected light beams) from the first and second corner cube prisms 7a and 7b.
- the optical length difference (phase difference) between the length of the optical path of the first laser light beam (solid lines in Fig. 1 ) and that of the optical path of the second laser light beam (dotted lines in Fig. 1 ) is detected by counting the interference fringes.
- a tolerable range for the positional deviation depends on the beam diameter of the laser light source 10, the performance of the phase difference detecting head 11, and the like.
- the tolerable range for a positional displacement of each corner cube prism 7a or 7b is a tolerable range for the amount of eccentricity of the rotating shaft 1a from the rotating shaft 3, which makes attachment of the rotary encoder 2 much easier.
- the phase difference detecting head 11 may adopt fringe counting technology (system) using a Michelson interferometer or heterodyne technology (system). If heterodyne technology is adopted, the laser light source 10 needs to emit orthogonally polarized two-frequency light. For example, a Zeeman laser or an AOM (acoustooptic element) is used.
- the data processing device 12 includes a computer device such as a personal computer.
- the rotating shaft 1a of the object 1 to be measured is rotationally driven using a drive device (not shown) (e.g., a motor).
- a pulse signal (rotation angle signal) outputted from the rotary encoder 2 is sent to a rotation angle detecting section 9 via the cable 16.
- the rotation angle detecting section 9 converts the pulse signal into a rotation angle (hereinafter designated by reference characters " ⁇ 1") and sends the rotation angle ⁇ 1 to the data processing device 12.
- a phase difference signal indicating a phase difference (optical path length difference) between the first laser light beam and the second laser light beam outputted from the phase difference detecting head 11 is sent to the data processing device 12 via a cable 21.
- the data processing device 12 constitutes a part (inclination angle calculating device) of the non-contact angle detecting device 20 and calculates an inclination angle (hereinafter designated by reference characters " ⁇ 2") of a straight line 70 connecting a vertex 70a of the first corner cube prism 7a and a vertex 70b of the second corner cube prism 7b as shown in Fig. 8 using a trigonometric function on the basis of the phase difference signal outputted from the phase difference detecting head 11 and the difference in position (interval) between a vertex of the first corner cube prism 7a and a vertex of the second corner cube prism 7b.
- the inclination angle ⁇ 2 obtained from the non-contact angle detecting device 20 has a higher resolution (a smaller resolution pitch) than the rotation angle ⁇ 1 obtained from the rotary encoder 2 and rotation angle detecting section 9.
- the data processing device 12 corrects the rotation angle ⁇ 1 (the rotation angle of the encoder body 2a relative to the rotating shaft 3) on the basis of the inclination angle ⁇ 2 (the inclination angle of a part of the rotary encoder 2 whose motion is regulated). That is, the data processing device 12 corrects the rotation angle ⁇ 1 that is measured using the rotary encoder 2 on the basis of the inclination angle ⁇ 2 of the straight line connecting the corresponding points of the corner cube prisms 7a and 7b.
- the data processing device 12 according to the present embodiment corrects the rotation angle ⁇ 1 by figuring out the sum of the angles ⁇ 1 and ⁇ 2 ( ⁇ 1 + ⁇ 2).
- motion of the encoder body 2a is regulated by a rotation stopping jig 8.
- locking tabs 8a and 8b lock an extending rod 2b which is provided at the encoder body 2a.
- the width of a gap between the two locking tabs 8a and 8b corresponds to the tolerable range for the amount of eccentricity.
- the rotation stopping jig 8 may be omitted. That is, the bearing 15 itself can function as a regulation member which regulates motion of the encoder body 2a, depending on the performance of the bearing 15.
- Fig. 6 is a front view showing a case where motion of the encoder body 2a is regulated by a weight 17. As shown in Fig. 6 , the weight 17 is attached to the encoder body 2a and is hanged down in a gravity direction. The encoder body 2a is urged in the gravity direction by the weight 17, and motion of the encoder body 2a is regulated to within the fixed allowance range.
- Fig. 7 is a side view showing a case where the object 1 to be measured is arranged along a horizontal direction.
- the rotation stopping jig 8 is weakly magnetized, the position of the encoder body 2a is easier to settle, and the measurement is easier. This case is especially effective in the case in Fig. 7 where the object 1 to be measured is horizontally arranged.
- Figs. 1 and 7 and the like show cases using the rotation stopping jig 8
- Fig. 6 shows a case using the weight 17
- any other regulation member e.g., a magnetic body which regulates motion by magnetic force
- the rotating shaft 3 of the rotary encoder 2 is attached to the rotating shaft 1a of the object 1 to be measured that is rotationally driven, motion (displacement) of the rotary encoder body 2a in the orthogonal plane orthogonal to the rotating shaft 3 of the rotary encoder 2 is regulated to within the fixed allowance range so as to tolerate eccentricity of the rotating shaft 1a of the object 1 to be measured from the rotating shaft 3 of the rotary encoder 2.
- the rotation angle ⁇ 1 of the rotating shaft 3 of the rotary encoder 2 is detected (measured) on the basis of a code read by the encoder read head 13, and the inclination angle ⁇ 2 of the encoder body 2a changed from a time point when measurement of the rotation angle of the rotating shaft 3 of the rotary encoder 2 is started is detected by the non-contact angle detecting device 20.
- the rotation angle ⁇ 1 is corrected on the basis of the inclination angle ⁇ 2.
- This configuration makes it possible to measure a rotation angle with high accuracy in a short time. More specifically, firstly, angle measurement using the rotary encoder 2 can omit manual work of an operator required for the conventional polygon mirror method and oscillation operation involving reverse rotation as in the Hirth coupling method. This allows not only high-accuracy measurement but also a reduction in overall measurement time. Secondly, since a measurement value from the rotary encoder 2 is corrected with a measurement value from the non-contact angle detecting device 20, further improved measurement accuracy can be achieved.
- the tolerable range for the amount of eccentricity of the rotating shaft 3 of the rotary encoder 2 from the rotating shaft 1a of the object 1 to be measured can be made broader than the tolerable range specified for the rotary encoder 2, attachment of the rotary encoder 2 to the object 1 to be measured is much easier and requires a shorter time.
- the non-contact angle detecting device 20 is not concurrently used, an attachment accuracy of about 100 ⁇ m is required. If the non-contact angle detecting device 20 of the laser interferometric type is concurrently used, the required attachment accuracy can be lowered to about 1 mm, which results in extension of the tolerable range for the amount of eccentricity.
- Fig. 9 is a view of the overall configuration of an example of an angle measuring system according to a second embodiment.
- the same components in Fig. 9 as those of the first embodiment shown in Figs. 1 to 8 are designated by the same reference numerals. A description of the matters described in the first embodiment will be omitted, and differences from the first embodiment will be mainly described below.
- the rotating shaft 3 of the rotary encoder 2 is attached to the rotating shaft 1a of the object 1 to be measured in the first embodiment.
- an encoder body 2a is attached to a rotating shaft 1a of an object 1 to be measured.
- an attachment 18 is an intervening member for attaching the encoder body 2a to the rotating shaft 1a of the object 1 to be measured and protects a rotating shaft 3 of a rotary encoder 2 such that the rotating shaft 3 of the rotary encoder 2 is not much affected by rotation of the rotating shaft 1a of the object 1 to be measured.
- a rotation stopping jig 8 locks the rotating shaft 3 of the rotary encoder 2 while tolerating motion (displacement) of the rotating shaft 3 of the rotary encoder 2 in an orthogonal plane orthogonal to the rotating shaft 3 of the rotary encoder 2 within a fixed allowance range.
- Corner cube prisms 7 (7a and 7b) are attached to the rotating shaft 3 of the rotary encoder 2. Like the first embodiment, the corner cube prisms 7 are arranged to directly confront an interference unit 4. Rotational movement of the rotating shaft 3 of the rotary encoder 2 is detected in a non-contact manner using the interference unit 4 and a phase difference detecting head 11.
- the load of the encoder body 2a is not placed on the rotating shaft 3 in the present embodiment, and the rotating shaft 3 only needs to bear the load of the relative light corner cube prisms 7. Therefore, the rotating shaft 3 and a bearing 15 can be made smaller, and a weight reduction can be achieved. Accordingly, the configuration of the present embodiment is more suitable, depending on the mountable weight of the rotating shaft 1a of the object 1 to be measured. On the other hand, care must be taken to ensure that a cable connected to the encoder body 2a does not wind around the rotary encoder 2 when the encoder body 2a rotates.
- the encoder body 2a is attached to the rotating shaft 1a of the object 1 to be measured that is rotationally driven, and motion (displacement) of the rotating shaft 3 of the rotary encoder 2 in the orthogonal plane orthogonal to the rotating shaft 3 of the rotary encoder 2 is regulated to within the fixed allowance range so as to tolerate eccentricity of the rotating shaft 1a of the object 1 to be measured from the rotating shaft 3 of the rotary encoder 2.
- a rotation angle of the encoder body 2a is detected (measured) on the basis of the code read by an encoder read head 13, and an inclination angle of the rotating shaft 3 of the rotary encoder 2 which is changed from a time point when measurement of the rotation angle of the encoder body 2a is started is detected by a non-contact angle detecting device 20.
- a rotation angle ⁇ 1 which is detected (measured) using the rotary encoder 2 is corrected on the basis of a changed inclination angle ⁇ 2 of the rotating shaft 3 of the rotary encoder 2 detected by the non-contact angle detecting device 20.
- the first and second embodiments have been described in the context of a case where a so-called laser gauge interferometer is used as a non-contact angle detecting device.
- any other detection device can be employed as long as the device can perform angle measurement in a non-contact manner with high accuracy.
- an autocollimator or a level may be used.
- the above-described rotation angle measurement may be dynamic measurement.
- at least one of static measurement, in which the rotation angle is detected when rotation of the rotating shaft 1a of the object 1 to be measured is stopped, and dynamic measurement, in which the rotation angle is detected while the rotating shaft 1a of the object 1 to be measured is rotating, is performed.
- dynamic measurement the non-contact angle detecting device 20 that is used together with the rotary encoder 2 is required to produce an output in real time.
- the present invention is configured such that the rotation angle ⁇ 1 is corrected on the basis of at least the inclination angle ⁇ 2.
- the amount of eccentricity of the rotating shaft 1a of the object 1 to be measured from the rotating shaft 3 of the rotary encoder 2 is detected, and the rotation angle ⁇ 1 is corrected on the basis of the detected amount of eccentricity and the inclination angle ⁇ 2.
- An object to be measured is not limited to the shapes shown in the drawings.
- the object to be measured may be in the shape of a disc.
- a rotating shaft of an object to be measured to which the rotary encoder 2 is to be attached need not be a shaft-like one which is specially formed.
- a rotation center of an object to be measured may be set as a rotating shaft of the object to be measured, and a rotary encoder may be attached to the rotation center.
Description
- The present invention relates to an angle measuring method and an angle measuring system, which can be suitably used in a technical field that requires accurate measurement of the rotation angle of a rotor.
- In order to accurately measure indexing accuracy of a rotor in a machine tool or the like, an angle measuring method using a polygon mirror and an autocollimator (hereinafter referred to as a "polygon mirror method") or an angle measuring method using a Hirth coupling and a laser interferometer (hereinafter referred to as a "Hirth coupling method") has conventionally been performed.
- The polygon mirror method includes measuring a difference between the rotation angle of an object to be measured on which a polygon mirror is mounted and the angle of the polygon mirror by a high-accuracy autocollimator.
- The Hirth coupling method includes rotating an object to be measured to which a Hirth coupling is attached to be a predetermined target angular displacement, counter-rotating the Hirth coupling by an amount corresponding to the target angular displacement after decoupling the Hirth coupling, and comparing the sum of the counter-angular displacement of the Hirth coupling and an angular displacement from a reference position which is measured by a laser interferometer with the target angular displacement of the object to be measured (Japanese National Publication of International Patent Application No.
1994-502727 - A method for the calibration of the angle through which an object is rotated about an axis of rotation, such as a rotary table, is known from
NL1033040 C2 - However, the conventional angle measuring techniques suffer from the disadvantages of longer measurement and the difficulty of improving measurement accuracy.
- In the polygon mirror method, measurement is repeated while the phase angle between the angle of the polygon mirror and that of an object to be measured is varied. Indexing is manually performed by an operator, which requires a measurer to continue measurement work under tension for a long time without a break. Additionally, because of low resolution and the difficulty of keeping an apparatus stable for a long time, there is a limitation to improvement in measurement accuracy.
- The Hirth coupling method requires the oscillating operation of rotating an object to be measured to a target angular displacement and then returning a reflecting mirror of a laser interferometer to the original position by counter-rotating the Hirth coupling by an amount corresponding to the target angular displacement, which results in longer overall measurement time. Additionally, since the accuracy of angle measurement depends on the resolution of gear teeth of the Hirth coupling, and a transmission error occurs in the gear teeth of the Hirth coupling when forward rotation and reverse rotation are repeated, there is a limitation to improvement in measurement accuracy.
- A rotary encoder is known as a device which detects a rotation angle. Although a rotary encoder needs to be attached to a rotating shaft of an object to be measured with high accuracy in order to bring measurement accuracy within a tolerable range, actual high-accuracy attachment of a rotary encoder is not very easy. This hinders utilization of a rotary encoder.
- The present invention has been made in consideration of the above-described circumstances, and aims to provide an angle measuring method and an angle measuring apparatus capable of measuring a rotation angle with high accuracy in a short time.
- In order to achieve the above-described object, according to the present invention, there is provided an angle measuring method according to
claim 8. - A rotary encoder is used which includes a body section, a rotating shaft which is freely rotatable with respect to the body section, a code section attached to the rotating shaft, and a read section fixed to the body section which reads a code of the code section. A displacement of a body section of the rotary encoder in a plane orthogonal to a rotating shaft of the rotary encoder is regulated within a fixed allowance range so as to tolerate eccentricity between a rotating shaft of an object to be measured which is rotationally driven and a rotating shaft of the rotary encoder attached to the rotating shaft of the object to be measured; a rotation angle of the rotating shaft of the rotary encoder is measured based on a code read by the read section of the rotary encoder; a changed angle of the body section of the rotary encoder is detected, the changed angle being an angle changed from a time point when measurement of the rotation angle of the rotating shaft of the rotary encoder is started; and the rotation angle measured using the rotary encoder is corrected based on the detected changed angle of the body section of the rotary encoder. With this configuration, a measurement value from the rotary encoder is corrected with a changed angle of the body section of the rotary encoder. The rotation angle can thus be measured with higher accuracy in a shorter time than a conventional angle measuring technique using the polygon mirror method or the Hirth coupling method. Additionally, a tolerable range for the amount of eccentricity between the rotating shaft of the rotary encoder and the rotating shaft of the object to be measured can be made broader than a tolerable range specified for the rotary encoder, which makes attachment of the rotary encoder to the object to be measured much easier. That is, according to the present invention, rotation angle measurement can be performed with high accuracy in a short time using a rotary encoder, which contributes greatly to an increase in the production capacity of a machine tool or the like.
- According to one aspect of the present invention, in the method, the regulating of displacement of the body section of the rotary encoder within the fixed allowance range is performed using a jig which locks the body section of the rotary encoder while tolerating the displacement of the body section of the rotary encoder within the fixed allowance range.
- According to one aspect of the present invention, the method further comprising urging the body section of the rotary encoder in a gravity direction using a weight is attached to the body section of the rotary encoder.
- Further, according to the present invention, there is also provided an angle measuring method using a rotary encoder including a body section, a rotating shaft which is freely rotatable with respect to the body section, a code section attached to the rotating shaft, and a read section fixed to the body section which reads a code of the code section, the angle measuring method comprising: regulating a displacement of a body section of the rotary encoder in a plane orthogonal to a rotating shaft of the rotary encoder within a fixed allowance range so as to tolerate eccentricity between a rotating shaft of an object to be measured which is rotationally driven and a rotating shaft of the rotary encoder attached to the rotating shaft of the object to be measured; measuring a rotation angle of the rotating shaft of the rotary encoder based on a code read by the read section of the rotary encoder; detecting a changed angle of the rotating shaft of the rotary encoder, the changed angle being an angle changed from a time point when measurement of the rotation angle of the body section of the rotary encoder is started; and correcting the rotation angle measured using the rotary encoder based on the detected changed angle of the rotating shaft of the rotary encoder. With this configuration, a measurement value from the rotary encoder is corrected with a changed angle of the body section of the rotary encoder. The rotation angle can thus be measured with higher accuracy in a shorter time than a conventional angle measuring technique using the polygon mirror method or the Hirth coupling method. Additionally, a tolerable range for the amount of eccentricity between the rotating shaft of the rotary encoder and the rotating shaft of the object to be measured can be made broader than a tolerable range specified for the rotary encoder, which makes attachment of the rotary encoder to the object to be measured much easier. That is, according to the present invention, rotation angle measurement can be performed with high accuracy in a short time using a rotary encoder, which contributes greatly to an increase in the production capacity of a machine tool or the like.
- According to one aspect of the present invention, in the method, the regulating of displacement of the body section of the rotary encoder within the fixed allowance range is performed using a jig which locks the rotating shaft of the rotary encoder while tolerating the displacement of the rotating shaft of the rotary encoder within the fixed allowance range.
- According to one aspect of the present invention, the method further comprising urging the rotating shaft of the rotary encoder in a gravity direction using a weight attached to the rotating shaft of the rotary encoder.
- According to the present invention, there is also provided an angle measuring system according to
claim 1. - In one aspect of the present invention, the regulation member includes a jig which locks the body section of the rotary encoder while tolerating the displacement of the body section of the rotary encoder within the fixed allowance range.
- In one aspect of the present invention, the regulation member includes a weight which is attached to the body section of the rotary encoder to urge the body section of the rotary encoder in a gravity direction.
- According to the present invention, there is also provided an angle measuring system comprising: a rotary encoder including a body section, a rotating shaft which is freely rotatable with respect to the body section, the rotating shaft being attached to an object to be measured which is rotationally driven, a code section attached to the rotating shaft, and a read section fixed to the body section which reads a code of the code section; a regulation member which regulates displacement of the rotating shaft of the rotary encoder in a plane orthogonal to the rotating shaft of the rotary encoder to within a fixed allowance range so as to tolerate eccentricity between the rotating shaft of the object to be measured and the rotating shaft of the rotary encoder; a non-contact angle detecting device which detects, in a non-contact manner, a changed angle of the rotating shaft of the rotary encoder, the changed angle being an angle changed from a time point when measurement of the rotation angle of the body section of the rotary encoder is started; and a correction device which corrects a rotation angle corresponding to a code read by the read section of the rotary encoder on the basis of the changed angle of the rotating shaft of the rotary encoder detected by the non-contact angle detecting device.
- According to one aspect of the present invention, the regulation member includes a jig which locks the rotating shaft of the rotary encoder while tolerating the displacement of the rotating shaft of the rotary encoder within the fixed allowance range.
- According to one aspect of the present invention, the regulation member includes a weight which is attached to the rotating shaft of the rotary encoder to urge the rotating shaft of the rotary encoder in a gravity direction.
- According to one aspect of the present invention, the non-contact angle detecting device includes first and second reflector elements set on the plane orthogonal to the rotating shaft of a part of the rotary encoder which is regulated by the regulation member, a laser light source, an interference optical system which splits a light beam emitted from the laser light source into a first light beam heading toward the first reflector element and a second light beam heading toward the second reflector element and causing a first reflected light beam reflected from the first reflector element and a second reflected light beam reflected from the second reflector element to interfere with each other, a phase difference detecting device which detects a phase difference between the first reflected light beam and the second reflected light beam caused by the interference optical system to interfere with each other, and an inclination angle calculating device which calculates an inclination angle of a straight line connecting corresponding points of the first reflector element and second reflector element on the basis of the phase difference between the first reflected light beam and the second reflected light beam detected by the phase difference detecting device and a difference in position between the first reflector element and the second reflector element.
- According to one aspect of the present invention, the correction device figures out the sum of the rotation angle corresponding to the code read by the read section of the rotary encoder and the inclination angle calculated by the inclination angle calculating device.
- According to one aspect of the present invention, the non-contact angle detecting device performs at least one of static measurement, in which the rotation angle is detected when rotation of the rotating shaft of the object to be measured is stopped, and dynamic measurement, in which the rotation angle is detected while the rotating shaft of the object to be measured is rotating.
- The present invention allows measurement of a rotation angle with higher accuracy in a shorter time than the prior art. The present invention also makes attachment of a rotary encoder to an object to be measured much easier.
-
-
Fig. 1 is a view of the overall configuration of an example of an angle measuring system according to a first embodiment; -
Fig. 2 is a side view showing how a rotating shaft of a rotary encoder is attached to an object to be measured which is rotationally attached; -
Fig. 3 is a front view showing how the rotating shaft of the rotary encoder is attached to the object to be measured which is rotationally attached; -
Fig. 4 is a side view showing how an interference unit of a non-contact angle detecting device is arranged to directly confront corner cube prisms; -
Fig. 5 is a front view showing how the interference unit of the non-contact angle detecting device is arranged to directly confront the corner cube prisms; -
Fig. 6 is a front view showing an example of a case where displacement of an encoder body is regulated by a weight; -
Fig. 7 is a side view showing a case where the object to be measured is arranged along a horizontal direction; -
Fig. 8 is an explanatory view used to describe an angle to be detected by the non-contact angle detecting device; -
Fig. 9 is a view of the overall configuration of an example of an angle measuring system according to a second embodiment; and -
Fig. 10 is a side view showing how an encoder body is attached to an object to be measured which is rotationally driven. - Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the accompanying drawings.
-
Fig. 1 is a view of the overall configuration of an example of an angle measuring system according to a first embodiment. - An
angle measuring system 100 shown inFig. 1 measures, using arotary encoder 2, the rotation angle of a rotating shaft 1a of anobject 1 to be measured which is rotationally driven. Therotary encoder 2 includes anencoder body 2a and a rotatingshaft 3 which is freely rotatable with respect to theencoder body 2a. -
Fig. 2 is a side view showing how therotating shaft 3 of therotary encoder 2 is attached to the rotating shaft 1a of theobject 1 to be measured, andFig. 3 is a front view thereof. - As shown in
Fig. 2 , a disc-like encoder 14 (code section) is attached to the rotatingshaft 3 inside theencoder body 2a. Graduations (codes) are marked on the entire circumference about the rotatingshaft 3 of theencoder 14. Theencoder 14 may be of the incremental type or of the absolute type. An encoder read head 13 (read section) which reads a graduation of theencoder 14 is fixed to theencoder body 2a. The encoder readhead 13 outputs a pulse signal (rotation angle signal) corresponding to a read graduation of theencoder 14. That is, a pulse signal corresponding to a variation in the rotation angle of theencoder body 2a relative to therotating shaft 3 is generated by therotary encoder 2. Note that theencoder body 2a may be of the coupling-containing type. - The
rotating shaft 3 of therotary encoder 2 is attached to theencoder body 2a via abearing 15 which is composed of, for example, a ball bearing. In the present embodiment, therotating shaft 3 of therotary encoder 2 is removably attached to the rotating shaft 1a of theobject 1 to be measured. After the attachment, therotating shaft 3 is freely rotatable with respect to theencoder body 2a via thebearing 15. For this reason, even if the rotating shaft 1a of theobject 1 to be measured rotates, acable 16 which is connected to therotary encoder body 2a does not twine around theobject 1 to be measured. Therotating shaft 3 according to the present embodiment includes an attachingsection 3a to be attached to the rotating shaft 1a of theobject 1 to be measured. Therotating shaft 3 may be attached to the rotating shaft 1a of theobject 1 to be measured via a special attachment. - The
encoder body 2a according to the present embodiment is arranged in a state in which motion (displacement) in a plane orthogonal to the rotating shaft 3 (hereinafter referred to as an "orthogonal plane") is tolerated within a fixed allowance range so as to tolerate eccentricity of the rotating shaft 1a of theobject 1 to be measured from therotating shaft 3 of therotary encoder 2, as will be described later. A tolerable range for the amount of eccentricity of therotating shaft 3 of therotary encoder 2 from the rotating shaft 1a of theobject 1 to be measured depends on attachment tolerances of a non-contact angle detecting device 20 (to be described later). Accordingly, the tolerable range for the amount of eccentricity is broader than a tolerable range specified for therotary encoder 2, which makes attachment of therotary encoder 2 to theobject 1 to be measured much easier. Although an axial runout of theobject 1 to be measured does not cause a measurement error, a side runout may cause a measurement error. A side runout is kept at or below a specified value which is calculated to suit target measurement accuracy. - The non-contact
angle detecting device 20 includes an interference unit 4 (arectangular prism 5 and a polarization beam splitter 6), corner cube prisms 7 (7a and 7b), alaser light source 10, a phasedifference detecting head 11, and adata processing device 12. The non-contactangle detecting device 20 detects, in a non-contact manner, the inclination angle of theencoder body 2a which is changed from a time point when measurement of the rotation angle of therotating shaft 3 using therotary encoder 2 is started. Note that the rotation angle measurement may be static measurement, in which the rotation angle is detected when rotation of the rotating shaft 1a of theobject 1 to be measured is stopped, or dynamic measurement, in which the rotation angle is detected while the rotating shaft 1a of theobject 1 to be measured is rotating. In static measurement, for example, a time point when rotation is started is a rotation angle measurement start point. In dynamic measurement, an arbitrary time point during rotation can be set as a rotation angle measurement start point. -
Fig. 4 is a side view showing how theinterference unit 4 is arranged, andFig. 5 is a front view thereof. - As shown in
Fig. 5 , the pair ofcorner cube prisms encoder body 2a. The interference unit 4 (interference optical system) is arranged to directly confront the pair ofcorner cube prisms - As shown in
Fig. 1 , theinterference unit 4 includes therectangular prism 5 andpolarization beam splitter 6. Theinterference unit 4 splits a laser light beam emitted from thelaser light source 10 into a first laser light beam heading toward the firstcorner cube prism 7a and a second laser light beam heading toward the secondcorner cube prism 7b. The first laser light beam having passed through thepolarization beam splitter 6 directly strikes the firstcorner cube prism 7a. The first laser light beam (first reflected laser light beam) reflected by the firstcorner cube prism 7a returns directly to thepolarization beam splitter 6. The second laser light beam reflected at right angles by thepolarization beam splitter 6 is further reflected at a right angle by therectangular prism 5 and strikes the secondcorner cube prism 7b. The second laser light beam (second reflected light beam) reflected by the secondcorner cube prism 7b is reflected at right angles by therectangular prism 5 and returns to thepolarization beam splitter 6. That is, theinterference unit 4 causes the first and second laser light beams parallel to each other to strike the first and secondcorner cube prisms corner cube prisms interference unit 4. - The
polarization beam splitter 6 is arranged such that a part (the first laser light beam) of the laser light beam emitted from thelaser light source 10 passes through thepolarization beam splitter 6 to perpendicularly strike an entrance surface of the firstcorner cube prism 7a. Therectangular prism 5 is arranged such that the second laser light beam having passed through therectangular prism 5 is parallel to the first laser light beam. - The phase difference detecting head 11 (phase difference detecting device) receives interfering light which is composed of the first reflected light beam and second reflected light beam with the different optical path lengths and detects the phase difference between the reflected light beams (the first and second reflected light beams) from the first and second
corner cube prisms Fig. 1 ) and that of the optical path of the second laser light beam (dotted lines inFig. 1 ) is detected by counting the interference fringes. - Note that when the
interference unit 4 directly confronts thecorner cube prisms corner cube prisms difference detecting head 11 can be brought within a tolerable range. A tolerable range for the positional deviation depends on the beam diameter of thelaser light source 10, the performance of the phasedifference detecting head 11, and the like. The tolerable range for a positional displacement of eachcorner cube prism rotating shaft 3, which makes attachment of therotary encoder 2 much easier. - For example, a He-Ne laser is used as the
laser light source 10. Even without wavelength stabilization, measurement accuracy is not much affected. Use of optical fibers for coupling thelaser light source 10 and theinterference unit 4 makes attachment work very easy. The phasedifference detecting head 11 may adopt fringe counting technology (system) using a Michelson interferometer or heterodyne technology (system). If heterodyne technology is adopted, thelaser light source 10 needs to emit orthogonally polarized two-frequency light. For example, a Zeeman laser or an AOM (acoustooptic element) is used. - The
data processing device 12 includes a computer device such as a personal computer. - The rotating shaft 1a of the
object 1 to be measured is rotationally driven using a drive device (not shown) (e.g., a motor). A pulse signal (rotation angle signal) outputted from therotary encoder 2 is sent to a rotationangle detecting section 9 via thecable 16. The rotationangle detecting section 9 converts the pulse signal into a rotation angle (hereinafter designated by reference characters "θ1") and sends the rotation angle θ1 to thedata processing device 12. A phase difference signal indicating a phase difference (optical path length difference) between the first laser light beam and the second laser light beam outputted from the phasedifference detecting head 11 is sent to thedata processing device 12 via acable 21. Thedata processing device 12 constitutes a part (inclination angle calculating device) of the non-contactangle detecting device 20 and calculates an inclination angle (hereinafter designated by reference characters "θ2") of astraight line 70 connecting avertex 70a of the firstcorner cube prism 7a and avertex 70b of the secondcorner cube prism 7b as shown inFig. 8 using a trigonometric function on the basis of the phase difference signal outputted from the phasedifference detecting head 11 and the difference in position (interval) between a vertex of the firstcorner cube prism 7a and a vertex of the secondcorner cube prism 7b. The inclination angle θ2 obtained from the non-contactangle detecting device 20 has a higher resolution (a smaller resolution pitch) than the rotation angle θ1 obtained from therotary encoder 2 and rotationangle detecting section 9. - The
data processing device 12 corrects the rotation angle θ1 (the rotation angle of theencoder body 2a relative to the rotating shaft 3) on the basis of the inclination angle θ2 (the inclination angle of a part of therotary encoder 2 whose motion is regulated). That is, thedata processing device 12 corrects the rotation angle θ1 that is measured using therotary encoder 2 on the basis of the inclination angle θ2 of the straight line connecting the corresponding points of thecorner cube prisms data processing device 12 according to the present embodiment corrects the rotation angle θ1 by figuring out the sum of the angles θ1 and θ2 (θ1 + θ2). - A specific example of a regulation member will be described.
- In the example shown in
Figs. 1 and5 , motion of theencoder body 2a is regulated by arotation stopping jig 8. In therotation stopping jig 8, lockingtabs rod 2b which is provided at theencoder body 2a. The width of a gap between the twolocking tabs encoder body 2a is regulated to at least within a measurable range for the non-contactangle detecting device 20. - In static measurement at measurement points, variations in measurement value from the
rotary encoder 2 and non-contactangle detecting device 20 are required to be kept sufficiently smaller than required for target measurement accuracy. Static measurement is often performed at the time of measurement of indexing accuracy. In this case, the measurement is performed while rotation and suspension of rotation of the object to be measured are repeated for each fixed angle. In measurement value acquisition, measurement values are assumed to be sufficiently stable to the target measurement accuracy. The rotational speed of theobject 1 to be measured depends especially on the performance of therotary encoder 2 and non-contactangle detecting device 20, and measurement can be generally performed during high-speed rotation. Similarly, the measurement solution is generally more excellent than the method using a polygon mirror and an autocollimator (polygon mirror method), the method using a Hirth coupling and a laser interferometer (Hirth coupling method), and the like. - Note that if the performance of the
bearing 15 is excellent, and theencoder body 2a is not made to rotate by rotation of theobject 1 to be measured, therotation stopping jig 8 may be omitted. That is, the bearing 15 itself can function as a regulation member which regulates motion of theencoder body 2a, depending on the performance of thebearing 15. -
Fig. 6 is a front view showing a case where motion of theencoder body 2a is regulated by aweight 17. As shown inFig. 6 , theweight 17 is attached to theencoder body 2a and is hanged down in a gravity direction. Theencoder body 2a is urged in the gravity direction by theweight 17, and motion of theencoder body 2a is regulated to within the fixed allowance range. -
Fig. 7 is a side view showing a case where theobject 1 to be measured is arranged along a horizontal direction. - If the
rotation stopping jig 8 is weakly magnetized, the position of theencoder body 2a is easier to settle, and the measurement is easier. This case is especially effective in the case inFig. 7 where theobject 1 to be measured is horizontally arranged. - Note that although
Figs. 1 and7 and the like show cases using therotation stopping jig 8, andFig. 6 shows a case using theweight 17, both may be used as regulation members. Alternatively, any other regulation member (e.g., a magnetic body which regulates motion by magnetic force) may be used. - As described above, in an angle measuring method according to the first embodiment, the
rotating shaft 3 of therotary encoder 2 is attached to the rotating shaft 1a of theobject 1 to be measured that is rotationally driven, motion (displacement) of therotary encoder body 2a in the orthogonal plane orthogonal to therotating shaft 3 of therotary encoder 2 is regulated to within the fixed allowance range so as to tolerate eccentricity of the rotating shaft 1a of theobject 1 to be measured from therotating shaft 3 of therotary encoder 2. The rotation angle θ1 of therotating shaft 3 of therotary encoder 2 is detected (measured) on the basis of a code read by the encoder readhead 13, and the inclination angle θ2 of theencoder body 2a changed from a time point when measurement of the rotation angle of therotating shaft 3 of therotary encoder 2 is started is detected by the non-contactangle detecting device 20. The rotation angle θ1 is corrected on the basis of the inclination angle θ2. - This configuration makes it possible to measure a rotation angle with high accuracy in a short time. More specifically, firstly, angle measurement using the
rotary encoder 2 can omit manual work of an operator required for the conventional polygon mirror method and oscillation operation involving reverse rotation as in the Hirth coupling method. This allows not only high-accuracy measurement but also a reduction in overall measurement time. Secondly, since a measurement value from therotary encoder 2 is corrected with a measurement value from the non-contactangle detecting device 20, further improved measurement accuracy can be achieved. Thirdly, since the tolerable range for the amount of eccentricity of therotating shaft 3 of therotary encoder 2 from the rotating shaft 1a of theobject 1 to be measured can be made broader than the tolerable range specified for therotary encoder 2, attachment of therotary encoder 2 to theobject 1 to be measured is much easier and requires a shorter time. For example, if the non-contactangle detecting device 20 is not concurrently used, an attachment accuracy of about 100 µm is required. If the non-contactangle detecting device 20 of the laser interferometric type is concurrently used, the required attachment accuracy can be lowered to about 1 mm, which results in extension of the tolerable range for the amount of eccentricity. -
Fig. 9 is a view of the overall configuration of an example of an angle measuring system according to a second embodiment. The same components inFig. 9 as those of the first embodiment shown inFigs. 1 to 8 are designated by the same reference numerals. A description of the matters described in the first embodiment will be omitted, and differences from the first embodiment will be mainly described below. - As shown in
Fig. 2 , therotating shaft 3 of therotary encoder 2 is attached to the rotating shaft 1a of theobject 1 to be measured in the first embodiment. In contrast, as shown inFig. 10 , anencoder body 2a is attached to a rotating shaft 1a of anobject 1 to be measured. - In
Fig. 10 , anattachment 18 is an intervening member for attaching theencoder body 2a to the rotating shaft 1a of theobject 1 to be measured and protects arotating shaft 3 of arotary encoder 2 such that therotating shaft 3 of therotary encoder 2 is not much affected by rotation of the rotating shaft 1a of theobject 1 to be measured. - A
rotation stopping jig 8 according to the present embodiment locks therotating shaft 3 of therotary encoder 2 while tolerating motion (displacement) of therotating shaft 3 of therotary encoder 2 in an orthogonal plane orthogonal to therotating shaft 3 of therotary encoder 2 within a fixed allowance range. - Corner cube prisms 7 (7a and 7b) according to the present embodiment are attached to the
rotating shaft 3 of therotary encoder 2. Like the first embodiment, thecorner cube prisms 7 are arranged to directly confront aninterference unit 4. Rotational movement of therotating shaft 3 of therotary encoder 2 is detected in a non-contact manner using theinterference unit 4 and a phasedifference detecting head 11. - Unlike the first embodiment, the load of the
encoder body 2a is not placed on therotating shaft 3 in the present embodiment, and therotating shaft 3 only needs to bear the load of the relative lightcorner cube prisms 7. Therefore, therotating shaft 3 and abearing 15 can be made smaller, and a weight reduction can be achieved. Accordingly, the configuration of the present embodiment is more suitable, depending on the mountable weight of the rotating shaft 1a of theobject 1 to be measured. On the other hand, care must be taken to ensure that a cable connected to theencoder body 2a does not wind around therotary encoder 2 when theencoder body 2a rotates. - In the second embodiment, the
encoder body 2a is attached to the rotating shaft 1a of theobject 1 to be measured that is rotationally driven, and motion (displacement) of therotating shaft 3 of therotary encoder 2 in the orthogonal plane orthogonal to therotating shaft 3 of therotary encoder 2 is regulated to within the fixed allowance range so as to tolerate eccentricity of the rotating shaft 1a of theobject 1 to be measured from therotating shaft 3 of therotary encoder 2. A rotation angle of theencoder body 2a is detected (measured) on the basis of the code read by an encoder readhead 13, and an inclination angle of therotating shaft 3 of therotary encoder 2 which is changed from a time point when measurement of the rotation angle of theencoder body 2a is started is detected by a non-contactangle detecting device 20. A rotation angle θ1 which is detected (measured) using therotary encoder 2 is corrected on the basis of a changed inclination angle θ2 of therotating shaft 3 of therotary encoder 2 detected by the non-contactangle detecting device 20. - Note that although the above-described first and second embodiments have been described in the context of a case using an optical rotary encoder as a rotary encoder, another rotary encoder such as a magnetic one may be used, of course.
- The first and second embodiments have been described in the context of a case where a so-called laser gauge interferometer is used as a non-contact angle detecting device. However, any other detection device can be employed as long as the device can perform angle measurement in a non-contact manner with high accuracy. For example, an autocollimator or a level may be used.
- The above-described rotation angle measurement may be dynamic measurement. In an angle measuring method and an angle measuring system according to the present invention, at least one of static measurement, in which the rotation angle is detected when rotation of the rotating shaft 1a of the
object 1 to be measured is stopped, and dynamic measurement, in which the rotation angle is detected while the rotating shaft 1a of theobject 1 to be measured is rotating, is performed. In dynamic measurement, the non-contactangle detecting device 20 that is used together with therotary encoder 2 is required to produce an output in real time. - A case where the rotation angle θ1 is corrected using only the inclination angle θ2 has been described as an example in order to simply describe the present invention. However, the correction may be performed on the basis of any other measurement value, of course. That is, the present invention is configured such that the rotation angle θ1 is corrected on the basis of at least the inclination angle θ2. For example, the amount of eccentricity of the rotating shaft 1a of the
object 1 to be measured from therotating shaft 3 of therotary encoder 2 is detected, and the rotation angle θ1 is corrected on the basis of the detected amount of eccentricity and the inclination angle θ2. - An object to be measured is not limited to the shapes shown in the drawings. For example, the object to be measured may be in the shape of a disc. A rotating shaft of an object to be measured to which the
rotary encoder 2 is to be attached need not be a shaft-like one which is specially formed. For example, a rotation center of an object to be measured may be set as a rotating shaft of the object to be measured, and a rotary encoder may be attached to the rotation center. - The present invention is not limited to examples described in the present specification and examples shown in the drawings.
Claims (13)
- A rotation angle measuring system which detects a rotation angle of a rotating body (3), comprising:a rotary encoder (2) configured to detect a relative rotation angle between a reference body (2a) and the rotating body (3) which is configured to be rotatable with respect to the reference body (2a); andlaser interference detecting means (20) configured to detect a rotation angle of the reference body (2a) from a stationary position separated from the reference body (2a) and the rotating body (3),wherein the reference body (2a) is regulated by a regulation member (8, 17) to be rotatable within a fixed range in a plane orthogonal to a rotation axis of the rotating body (3) such that the reference body (2a) is in a non-restrained state where the reference body (2a) is not directly restrained.
- The rotation angle measuring system according to claim 1, wherein the laser interference detecting means (20) detects the rotation angle of the reference body (2a) concurrently with the detection of the relative rotation angle by the rotary encoder (2).
- The rotation angle measuring system according to claim 1 or 2, further comprising correction means (12) configured to correct the rotation angle detected by the rotary encoder (2) based on the rotation angle detected by the laser interference detecting means (20).
- The rotation angle measuring system according to claim 1 to 3, wherein the regulation member includes a weight member (17) which urges a reference position of the reference body (2a) in a gravity direction.
- The rotation angle measuring system according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein
the reference body (2a) is a body section of the rotary encoder (2), and
the rotating body (3) is a rotating shaft (3) of the rotary encoder (2) which is rotatable with respect to the body section (2a). - The rotation angle measuring system according to any one of claims 1 to 5, wherein
the rotation angle of the reference body (2a) is an inclination angle of the reference body (2a) changed from a time point when measurement of the relative rotation angle is started. - The rotation angle measuring system according to any one of claims 1 to 6, wherein
the laser interference detecting means (20) includes a laser light source (10) and a phase difference detecting head (11) configured to detect a phase difference between a light emitted from the laser light source (10) and a light reflected from the reference body (2a), and
the stationary position is a position where the phase difference detecting head (11) is disposed. - A rotation angle measuring method of a rotation angle of a rotating body (3) in a rotation angle measuring system which comprises:a rotary encoder (2) configured to detect a relative rotation angle between a reference body (2a), and the rotating body (3) which is configured to be rotatable with respect to the reference body (2a); andlaser interference detecting means (20) configured to detect a rotation angle of the reference body (2a) from a stationary position separated from the reference body (2a) and the rotating body (3),the rotation angle detecting method comprising:a first detection step of detecting the relative rotation angle of the rotating body (3) with respect to the reference body (2a) by the rotary encoder (2); anda second detection step of detecting the rotation angle of the reference body (2a) by the laser interference detecting means (20),wherein the reference body (2a) is regulated by a regulation member (8, 17) to be rotatable within a fixed range in a plane orthogonal to a rotation axis of the rotating body (3) such that the reference body (2a) is in a non-restrained state where the reference body (2a) is not directly restrained.
- The rotation angle measuring method according to claim 8, wherein the second detection step detects the rotation angle of the reference body (2a) concurrently with the detection of the relative rotation angle in the first detection step.
- The rotation angle measuring method according to claim 8 or 9, further comprising
a correction step of correcting the rotation angle detected in the first detection step based on the rotation angle detected in the second detection step. - The rotation angle measuring method according to any one of claims 8 to 10, wherein
the reference body (2a) is a body section of the rotary encoder (2), and
the rotating body (3) is a rotating shaft (3) of the rotary encoder (2) which is rotatable with respect to the body section (2a). - The rotation angle measuring method according to any one of claims 8 to 11, wherein
the rotation angle of the reference body (2a) is an inclination angle of the reference body (2a) changed from a time point when measurement of the relative rotation angle is started. - The rotation angle measuring method according to any one of claims 8 to 12, wherein
the laser interference detecting means (20) includes a laser light source (10) and a phase difference detecting head (11) configured to detect a phase difference between a light emitted from the laser light source (10) and a light reflected from the reference body (2a), and
the stationary position is a position where the phase difference detecting head (11) is disposed.
Priority Applications (1)
Application Number | Priority Date | Filing Date | Title |
---|---|---|---|
EP17163605.3A EP3214414A3 (en) | 2010-10-27 | 2011-10-26 | Rotary encoder with laser interferometer for determining position changes of the stator |
Applications Claiming Priority (2)
Application Number | Priority Date | Filing Date | Title |
---|---|---|---|
JP2010241173A JP5115872B2 (en) | 2010-10-27 | 2010-10-27 | Angle measuring method and angle measuring system |
EP11186603.4A EP2447677B1 (en) | 2010-10-27 | 2011-10-26 | Angle measuring method and angle measuring system |
Related Parent Applications (2)
Application Number | Title | Priority Date | Filing Date |
---|---|---|---|
EP11186603.4A Division-Into EP2447677B1 (en) | 2010-10-27 | 2011-10-26 | Angle measuring method and angle measuring system |
EP11186603.4A Division EP2447677B1 (en) | 2010-10-27 | 2011-10-26 | Angle measuring method and angle measuring system |
Related Child Applications (2)
Application Number | Title | Priority Date | Filing Date |
---|---|---|---|
EP17163605.3A Division EP3214414A3 (en) | 2010-10-27 | 2011-10-26 | Rotary encoder with laser interferometer for determining position changes of the stator |
EP17163605.3A Division-Into EP3214414A3 (en) | 2010-10-27 | 2011-10-26 | Rotary encoder with laser interferometer for determining position changes of the stator |
Publications (2)
Publication Number | Publication Date |
---|---|
EP2899513A1 EP2899513A1 (en) | 2015-07-29 |
EP2899513B1 true EP2899513B1 (en) | 2017-05-10 |
Family
ID=45092176
Family Applications (5)
Application Number | Title | Priority Date | Filing Date |
---|---|---|---|
EP11186603.4A Active EP2447677B1 (en) | 2010-10-27 | 2011-10-26 | Angle measuring method and angle measuring system |
EP17163605.3A Withdrawn EP3214414A3 (en) | 2010-10-27 | 2011-10-26 | Rotary encoder with laser interferometer for determining position changes of the stator |
EP15152832.0A Active EP2899513B1 (en) | 2010-10-27 | 2011-10-26 | Rotary encoder with laser interferometer for determining position changes of the stator |
EP15156327.7A Active EP2905583B1 (en) | 2010-10-27 | 2011-10-26 | Angle measuring method and angle measuring system |
EP16181443.9A Withdrawn EP3104130A1 (en) | 2010-10-27 | 2011-10-26 | Angle measuring method and angle measuring system |
Family Applications Before (2)
Application Number | Title | Priority Date | Filing Date |
---|---|---|---|
EP11186603.4A Active EP2447677B1 (en) | 2010-10-27 | 2011-10-26 | Angle measuring method and angle measuring system |
EP17163605.3A Withdrawn EP3214414A3 (en) | 2010-10-27 | 2011-10-26 | Rotary encoder with laser interferometer for determining position changes of the stator |
Family Applications After (2)
Application Number | Title | Priority Date | Filing Date |
---|---|---|---|
EP15156327.7A Active EP2905583B1 (en) | 2010-10-27 | 2011-10-26 | Angle measuring method and angle measuring system |
EP16181443.9A Withdrawn EP3104130A1 (en) | 2010-10-27 | 2011-10-26 | Angle measuring method and angle measuring system |
Country Status (2)
Country | Link |
---|---|
EP (5) | EP2447677B1 (en) |
JP (1) | JP5115872B2 (en) |
Families Citing this family (6)
Publication number | Priority date | Publication date | Assignee | Title |
---|---|---|---|---|
WO2013122037A1 (en) * | 2012-02-15 | 2013-08-22 | 株式会社東京精密 | Rotational angle measurement device and rotational angle measurement method |
JP6090656B2 (en) * | 2012-02-15 | 2017-03-08 | 株式会社東京精密 | Rotation angle measurement device and rotation angle measurement method |
US9134145B2 (en) | 2013-04-03 | 2015-09-15 | Tokyo Seimitsu Co., Ltd. | Angle measuring method and angle measuring system |
CA3022504A1 (en) * | 2016-05-03 | 2017-11-09 | Arges Gmbh | Optical rotation angle measuring system |
JP7034822B2 (en) * | 2018-05-01 | 2022-03-14 | 新東エスプレシジョン株式会社 | Angle measurement system |
CN113639674B (en) * | 2021-10-13 | 2022-01-14 | 成都宏明电子股份有限公司 | Non-contact rotary potentiometer based on light refraction principle |
Family Cites Families (9)
Publication number | Priority date | Publication date | Assignee | Title |
---|---|---|---|---|
SE396108B (en) * | 1975-03-12 | 1977-09-05 | Akermans Verkstad Ab | ANGLE METHOD FOR THE EXCAVATOR HEAT FOR EXCAVATORS |
GB9013390D0 (en) * | 1990-06-15 | 1990-08-08 | Renishaw Plc | Method and apparatus for measurement of angular displacement |
GB9119304D0 (en) * | 1991-09-10 | 1991-10-23 | Renishaw Transducer Syst | Method and apparatus for calibration of angular displacement |
US5508806A (en) * | 1995-02-13 | 1996-04-16 | Hewlett-Packard Company | Apparatus and method for making rotary calibrations of a machine tool table |
JP3698796B2 (en) * | 1996-03-12 | 2005-09-21 | オリンパス株式会社 | Angle detection device and head-mounted image display device |
JP3192992B2 (en) * | 1996-08-27 | 2001-07-30 | 株式会社東京精密 | Method and system for measuring angle indexing accuracy of machine tool |
JP2005292037A (en) * | 2004-04-02 | 2005-10-20 | Tokyo Seimitsu Co Ltd | Angle measuring instrument |
NL1033040C2 (en) * | 2006-12-12 | 2008-06-18 | Iac Geometrische Ingenieurs B | Method is for calibration of the angle at which an object is rotated round a rotation axis such as a round table |
WO2013122037A1 (en) * | 2012-02-15 | 2013-08-22 | 株式会社東京精密 | Rotational angle measurement device and rotational angle measurement method |
-
2010
- 2010-10-27 JP JP2010241173A patent/JP5115872B2/en active Active
-
2011
- 2011-10-26 EP EP11186603.4A patent/EP2447677B1/en active Active
- 2011-10-26 EP EP17163605.3A patent/EP3214414A3/en not_active Withdrawn
- 2011-10-26 EP EP15152832.0A patent/EP2899513B1/en active Active
- 2011-10-26 EP EP15156327.7A patent/EP2905583B1/en active Active
- 2011-10-26 EP EP16181443.9A patent/EP3104130A1/en not_active Withdrawn
Also Published As
Publication number | Publication date |
---|---|
JP5115872B2 (en) | 2013-01-09 |
EP3214414A2 (en) | 2017-09-06 |
EP2447677B1 (en) | 2016-12-07 |
EP3214414A3 (en) | 2017-09-20 |
EP2447677A2 (en) | 2012-05-02 |
JP2012093252A (en) | 2012-05-17 |
EP2905583A1 (en) | 2015-08-12 |
EP2447677A3 (en) | 2014-05-21 |
EP2899513A1 (en) | 2015-07-29 |
EP3104130A1 (en) | 2016-12-14 |
EP2905583B1 (en) | 2016-12-07 |
Similar Documents
Publication | Publication Date | Title |
---|---|---|
US9574908B2 (en) | Angle measuring method and angle measuring system | |
EP2899513B1 (en) | Rotary encoder with laser interferometer for determining position changes of the stator | |
JP5682802B2 (en) | Rotation angle measurement device and rotation angle measurement method | |
JP5733461B2 (en) | Angle measuring method and angle measuring system | |
CN101587241B (en) | Light beam scanning apparatus, laser machining apparatus, test method and laser machining method | |
JP5224206B2 (en) | Angle measuring method and angle measuring system | |
JP5633981B2 (en) | Rotation angle measurement method and rotation angle measurement system | |
JP5656110B2 (en) | Angle measuring method and angle measuring system | |
JP5187607B2 (en) | Angle measuring method and angle measuring system | |
JP6281106B2 (en) | Angle measuring method and angle measuring system | |
JP6292428B2 (en) | Rotation angle measurement device and rotation angle measurement method | |
JPH05642B2 (en) | ||
Günther et al. | Turning process monitoring using a robust and miniaturized non-incremental interferometric distance sensor | |
Jywe et al. | The Development of a Diffraction Optoelectronic Inclinometer | |
Feng et al. | In-situ measurements of large external diameters by a heterodyne laser interferometer |
Legal Events
Date | Code | Title | Description |
---|---|---|---|
PUAI | Public reference made under article 153(3) epc to a published international application that has entered the european phase |
Free format text: ORIGINAL CODE: 0009012 |
|
17P | Request for examination filed |
Effective date: 20150128 |
|
AC | Divisional application: reference to earlier application |
Ref document number: 2447677 Country of ref document: EP Kind code of ref document: P |
|
AK | Designated contracting states |
Kind code of ref document: A1 Designated state(s): AL AT BE BG CH CY CZ DE DK EE ES FI FR GB GR HR HU IE IS IT LI LT LU LV MC MK MT NL NO PL PT RO RS SE SI SK SM TR |
|
17Q | First examination report despatched |
Effective date: 20150703 |
|
GRAP | Despatch of communication of intention to grant a patent |
Free format text: ORIGINAL CODE: EPIDOSNIGR1 |
|
INTG | Intention to grant announced |
Effective date: 20161202 |
|
GRAS | Grant fee paid |
Free format text: ORIGINAL CODE: EPIDOSNIGR3 |
|
GRAA | (expected) grant |
Free format text: ORIGINAL CODE: 0009210 |
|
AC | Divisional application: reference to earlier application |
Ref document number: 2447677 Country of ref document: EP Kind code of ref document: P |
|
AK | Designated contracting states |
Kind code of ref document: B1 Designated state(s): AL AT BE BG CH CY CZ DE DK EE ES FI FR GB GR HR HU IE IS IT LI LT LU LV MC MK MT NL NO PL PT RO RS SE SI SK SM TR |
|
REG | Reference to a national code |
Ref country code: GB Ref legal event code: FG4D |
|
REG | Reference to a national code |
Ref country code: AT Ref legal event code: REF Ref document number: 892844 Country of ref document: AT Kind code of ref document: T Effective date: 20170515 Ref country code: CH Ref legal event code: EP |
|
REG | Reference to a national code |
Ref country code: IE Ref legal event code: FG4D |
|
REG | Reference to a national code |
Ref country code: DE Ref legal event code: R096 Ref document number: 602011037951 Country of ref document: DE |
|
REG | Reference to a national code |
Ref country code: NL Ref legal event code: MP Effective date: 20170510 |
|
REG | Reference to a national code |
Ref country code: LT Ref legal event code: MG4D |
|
REG | Reference to a national code |
Ref country code: AT Ref legal event code: MK05 Ref document number: 892844 Country of ref document: AT Kind code of ref document: T Effective date: 20170510 |
|
PG25 | Lapsed in a contracting state [announced via postgrant information from national office to epo] |
Ref country code: AT Free format text: LAPSE BECAUSE OF FAILURE TO SUBMIT A TRANSLATION OF THE DESCRIPTION OR TO PAY THE FEE WITHIN THE PRESCRIBED TIME-LIMIT Effective date: 20170510 Ref country code: GR Free format text: LAPSE BECAUSE OF FAILURE TO SUBMIT A TRANSLATION OF THE DESCRIPTION OR TO PAY THE FEE WITHIN THE PRESCRIBED TIME-LIMIT Effective date: 20170811 Ref country code: HR Free format text: LAPSE BECAUSE OF FAILURE TO SUBMIT A TRANSLATION OF THE DESCRIPTION OR TO PAY THE FEE WITHIN THE PRESCRIBED TIME-LIMIT Effective date: 20170510 Ref country code: LT Free format text: LAPSE BECAUSE OF FAILURE TO SUBMIT A TRANSLATION OF THE DESCRIPTION OR TO PAY THE FEE WITHIN THE PRESCRIBED TIME-LIMIT Effective date: 20170510 Ref country code: FI Free format text: LAPSE BECAUSE OF FAILURE TO SUBMIT A TRANSLATION OF THE DESCRIPTION OR TO PAY THE FEE WITHIN THE PRESCRIBED TIME-LIMIT Effective date: 20170510 Ref country code: ES Free format text: LAPSE BECAUSE OF FAILURE TO SUBMIT A TRANSLATION OF THE DESCRIPTION OR TO PAY THE FEE WITHIN THE PRESCRIBED TIME-LIMIT Effective date: 20170510 Ref country code: NO Free format text: LAPSE BECAUSE OF FAILURE TO SUBMIT A TRANSLATION OF THE DESCRIPTION OR TO PAY THE FEE WITHIN THE PRESCRIBED TIME-LIMIT Effective date: 20170810 |
|
PG25 | Lapsed in a contracting state [announced via postgrant information from national office to epo] |
Ref country code: PL Free format text: LAPSE BECAUSE OF FAILURE TO SUBMIT A TRANSLATION OF THE DESCRIPTION OR TO PAY THE FEE WITHIN THE PRESCRIBED TIME-LIMIT Effective date: 20170510 Ref country code: NL Free format text: LAPSE BECAUSE OF FAILURE TO SUBMIT A TRANSLATION OF THE DESCRIPTION OR TO PAY THE FEE WITHIN THE PRESCRIBED TIME-LIMIT Effective date: 20170510 Ref country code: SE Free format text: LAPSE BECAUSE OF FAILURE TO SUBMIT A TRANSLATION OF THE DESCRIPTION OR TO PAY THE FEE WITHIN THE PRESCRIBED TIME-LIMIT Effective date: 20170510 Ref country code: RS Free format text: LAPSE BECAUSE OF FAILURE TO SUBMIT A TRANSLATION OF THE DESCRIPTION OR TO PAY THE FEE WITHIN THE PRESCRIBED TIME-LIMIT Effective date: 20170510 Ref country code: IS Free format text: LAPSE BECAUSE OF FAILURE TO SUBMIT A TRANSLATION OF THE DESCRIPTION OR TO PAY THE FEE WITHIN THE PRESCRIBED TIME-LIMIT Effective date: 20170910 Ref country code: LV Free format text: LAPSE BECAUSE OF FAILURE TO SUBMIT A TRANSLATION OF THE DESCRIPTION OR TO PAY THE FEE WITHIN THE PRESCRIBED TIME-LIMIT Effective date: 20170510 Ref country code: BG Free format text: LAPSE BECAUSE OF FAILURE TO SUBMIT A TRANSLATION OF THE DESCRIPTION OR TO PAY THE FEE WITHIN THE PRESCRIBED TIME-LIMIT Effective date: 20170810 |
|
PG25 | Lapsed in a contracting state [announced via postgrant information from national office to epo] |
Ref country code: RO Free format text: LAPSE BECAUSE OF FAILURE TO SUBMIT A TRANSLATION OF THE DESCRIPTION OR TO PAY THE FEE WITHIN THE PRESCRIBED TIME-LIMIT Effective date: 20170510 Ref country code: CZ Free format text: LAPSE BECAUSE OF FAILURE TO SUBMIT A TRANSLATION OF THE DESCRIPTION OR TO PAY THE FEE WITHIN THE PRESCRIBED TIME-LIMIT Effective date: 20170510 Ref country code: EE Free format text: LAPSE BECAUSE OF FAILURE TO SUBMIT A TRANSLATION OF THE DESCRIPTION OR TO PAY THE FEE WITHIN THE PRESCRIBED TIME-LIMIT Effective date: 20170510 Ref country code: SK Free format text: LAPSE BECAUSE OF FAILURE TO SUBMIT A TRANSLATION OF THE DESCRIPTION OR TO PAY THE FEE WITHIN THE PRESCRIBED TIME-LIMIT Effective date: 20170510 Ref country code: DK Free format text: LAPSE BECAUSE OF FAILURE TO SUBMIT A TRANSLATION OF THE DESCRIPTION OR TO PAY THE FEE WITHIN THE PRESCRIBED TIME-LIMIT Effective date: 20170510 |
|
REG | Reference to a national code |
Ref country code: DE Ref legal event code: R097 Ref document number: 602011037951 Country of ref document: DE |
|
PG25 | Lapsed in a contracting state [announced via postgrant information from national office to epo] |
Ref country code: IT Free format text: LAPSE BECAUSE OF FAILURE TO SUBMIT A TRANSLATION OF THE DESCRIPTION OR TO PAY THE FEE WITHIN THE PRESCRIBED TIME-LIMIT Effective date: 20170510 Ref country code: SM Free format text: LAPSE BECAUSE OF FAILURE TO SUBMIT A TRANSLATION OF THE DESCRIPTION OR TO PAY THE FEE WITHIN THE PRESCRIBED TIME-LIMIT Effective date: 20170510 |
|
PLBE | No opposition filed within time limit |
Free format text: ORIGINAL CODE: 0009261 |
|
STAA | Information on the status of an ep patent application or granted ep patent |
Free format text: STATUS: NO OPPOSITION FILED WITHIN TIME LIMIT |
|
26N | No opposition filed |
Effective date: 20180213 |
|
PG25 | Lapsed in a contracting state [announced via postgrant information from national office to epo] |
Ref country code: SI Free format text: LAPSE BECAUSE OF FAILURE TO SUBMIT A TRANSLATION OF THE DESCRIPTION OR TO PAY THE FEE WITHIN THE PRESCRIBED TIME-LIMIT Effective date: 20170510 Ref country code: MC Free format text: LAPSE BECAUSE OF FAILURE TO SUBMIT A TRANSLATION OF THE DESCRIPTION OR TO PAY THE FEE WITHIN THE PRESCRIBED TIME-LIMIT Effective date: 20170510 |
|
REG | Reference to a national code |
Ref country code: CH Ref legal event code: PL |
|
REG | Reference to a national code |
Ref country code: IE Ref legal event code: MM4A |
|
REG | Reference to a national code |
Ref country code: FR Ref legal event code: ST Effective date: 20180629 |
|
PG25 | Lapsed in a contracting state [announced via postgrant information from national office to epo] |
Ref country code: LI Free format text: LAPSE BECAUSE OF NON-PAYMENT OF DUE FEES Effective date: 20171031 Ref country code: CH Free format text: LAPSE BECAUSE OF NON-PAYMENT OF DUE FEES Effective date: 20171031 Ref country code: LU Free format text: LAPSE BECAUSE OF NON-PAYMENT OF DUE FEES Effective date: 20171026 |
|
REG | Reference to a national code |
Ref country code: BE Ref legal event code: MM Effective date: 20171031 |
|
PG25 | Lapsed in a contracting state [announced via postgrant information from national office to epo] |
Ref country code: FR Free format text: LAPSE BECAUSE OF NON-PAYMENT OF DUE FEES Effective date: 20171031 Ref country code: BE Free format text: LAPSE BECAUSE OF NON-PAYMENT OF DUE FEES Effective date: 20171031 |
|
PG25 | Lapsed in a contracting state [announced via postgrant information from national office to epo] |
Ref country code: MT Free format text: LAPSE BECAUSE OF NON-PAYMENT OF DUE FEES Effective date: 20171026 |
|
PG25 | Lapsed in a contracting state [announced via postgrant information from national office to epo] |
Ref country code: IE Free format text: LAPSE BECAUSE OF NON-PAYMENT OF DUE FEES Effective date: 20171026 |
|
PG25 | Lapsed in a contracting state [announced via postgrant information from national office to epo] |
Ref country code: HU Free format text: LAPSE BECAUSE OF FAILURE TO SUBMIT A TRANSLATION OF THE DESCRIPTION OR TO PAY THE FEE WITHIN THE PRESCRIBED TIME-LIMIT; INVALID AB INITIO Effective date: 20111026 |
|
PG25 | Lapsed in a contracting state [announced via postgrant information from national office to epo] |
Ref country code: CY Free format text: LAPSE BECAUSE OF FAILURE TO SUBMIT A TRANSLATION OF THE DESCRIPTION OR TO PAY THE FEE WITHIN THE PRESCRIBED TIME-LIMIT Effective date: 20170510 |
|
PG25 | Lapsed in a contracting state [announced via postgrant information from national office to epo] |
Ref country code: MK Free format text: LAPSE BECAUSE OF FAILURE TO SUBMIT A TRANSLATION OF THE DESCRIPTION OR TO PAY THE FEE WITHIN THE PRESCRIBED TIME-LIMIT Effective date: 20170510 |
|
PG25 | Lapsed in a contracting state [announced via postgrant information from national office to epo] |
Ref country code: TR Free format text: LAPSE BECAUSE OF FAILURE TO SUBMIT A TRANSLATION OF THE DESCRIPTION OR TO PAY THE FEE WITHIN THE PRESCRIBED TIME-LIMIT Effective date: 20170510 |
|
PG25 | Lapsed in a contracting state [announced via postgrant information from national office to epo] |
Ref country code: PT Free format text: LAPSE BECAUSE OF FAILURE TO SUBMIT A TRANSLATION OF THE DESCRIPTION OR TO PAY THE FEE WITHIN THE PRESCRIBED TIME-LIMIT Effective date: 20170510 |
|
PG25 | Lapsed in a contracting state [announced via postgrant information from national office to epo] |
Ref country code: AL Free format text: LAPSE BECAUSE OF FAILURE TO SUBMIT A TRANSLATION OF THE DESCRIPTION OR TO PAY THE FEE WITHIN THE PRESCRIBED TIME-LIMIT Effective date: 20170510 |
|
P01 | Opt-out of the competence of the unified patent court (upc) registered |
Effective date: 20230526 |
|
PGFP | Annual fee paid to national office [announced via postgrant information from national office to epo] |
Ref country code: GB Payment date: 20230907 Year of fee payment: 13 |
|
PGFP | Annual fee paid to national office [announced via postgrant information from national office to epo] |
Ref country code: DE Payment date: 20230830 Year of fee payment: 13 |